


After Dark

by FoxCollector



Series: Tobirama and Izuna Have No Luck [1]
Category: Naruto
Genre: Gen, Horror, Horror is one of them, I am actually hoping to scare people here, I have two settings, I hope, I repeat, Interns & Internships, Madara's not there much either, Office AU, Or just survive the night, Original character is only there for 2 minutes, Tobirama and Izuna vs ghost, but guys, fight, no ships, or at least my attempt at it, the world needs more Tobirama and Izuna friendship, then ship away, this is horror, unless you're wearing your shipping goggles
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-08-09
Updated: 2017-08-09
Packaged: 2018-12-13 09:11:56
Rating: Mature
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 2
Words: 11,853
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/11756643
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/FoxCollector/pseuds/FoxCollector
Summary: “Oh, so did you hear about the fourth floor?” Izuna asked. He handed Tobirama his mug and went back to leaning against the counter.Tobirama frowned. He would prefer to go back up and keep working at this point. “What.”“Well, the guys on my floor all say it’s haunted,” Izuna said.Tobirama gave him a condescending look. “Of course they do. It’s the ‘fourth’ floor. Izuna, you’ve been on the fourth floor. We go there to copy things all the time.”“Yeah,” Izuna said. He sounded reluctant. “But it’s creepy.”Or Tobirama and Izuna stay too late at work and learn why no one else stays after dark.





	1. The Basement

**Author's Note:**

> I'm really not sure where this came from. I was trying to do a MadaTobi office romance, and then I started thinking about the backstory and this happened. I mean...what??
> 
> I promise I'll post another, nicer, thing after this, for anyone who is creeped out! It'll probably be vaguely IzuTobi just to send happy feelings out for them.
> 
> Okay, so I'm actually a big fan of horror, and I've done a few original stories before, but somehow I didn't think horror would make it into my fanfics??
> 
> I hope it's actually scary, or at least readable. I mean, it scared me sure, but it was also 2 AM and I was listening to the Layers of Fear soundtrack, so I can't be trusted.
> 
> Also, warning, I'm not an office person. My knowledge of businesses is entirely German, but the difference between an OHG and a GmbH isn't relevant here so I basically took all my mother's jargon and used it instead. I mean, BF that ROCCO in the SP7 and whatever else she says. So, apologies to anyone who works in an actual business!
> 
> Read, enjoy, review!

            Of all the places Tobirama had expected to end up at as an intern, the Otani Corporation was far from the worst. It also wasn’t the best, but as he’d told Hashirama (maybe 97 times) he couldn’t just intern at their own company; he wanted to bring in outside experience. Hashirama himself had done that, and yet he seemed very opposed to letting his younger brother intern somewhere else while he finished business school. It was only because Tobirama was more than used to dealing with his brother that he hadn’t thrown something at the other man’s head and instead managed to convince him to let him go.

            What he could have done without, though, was ending up at the same place as Uchiha Izuna.

            Uchiha Izuna was a ditzy, stuck-up ass. Who also happened to be the little brother of Hashirama’s best friend. Which meant that, growing up, Tobirama and Izuna had fostered a rivalry that was one part grudging admiration of each other, and one part stubborn refusal to back down or be beaten. It was why Tobirama could admit that Izuna was damn smart, while still wishing he might die in a fire.

            As interns they’d been subjected to more work and harassment than either of them had ever endured, which was impressive considering their brothers’ overbearing personalities. More than once Tobirama had played coffee boy, and despite his nasty glares at everyone they always asked him again. Izuna was the sandwich fetcher.

            This was something he’d more or less expected, given that Hashirama had regaled him of the many adventures he’d had as sandwich fetcher, including the time he’d dropped everything on the elevator on the way back up. Madara had apparently been designated as courier. He was deemed too dangerous to have near food, and no one could stand his coffee. Tobirama understood. Madara was a train wreck in the kitchen.

            In addition to these extra curricular activities, they were also expected to perform a large amount of work, and they often ended up working into the evenings (though never too late) and would come in on weekends. A lot of other employees also worked the extra hours, but for Tobirama and Izuna it was essentially a requirement. So they ended up seeing a lot of each other.

            Given that their last actual physical fight was in grade school, Tobirama wasn’t worried about either of them losing their jobs; neither of them was willing to screw things up for a petty grudge. They tolerated each other. And helped each other. And even limited the number of insults thrown at each other (at work at least). The end result was that a few of the senior workers actually thought they were friends. And maybe they were. In a way.

            Otani was an old company and though it was beginning to decline, the name was still prestigious enough to throw around as an ego boost, even after the company was forced to downsize and relocate to a smaller building. The new office building was older, not that Tobirama had ever seen the original office, but he’d heard when it had been bought by Uzumaki LLC. The building Otani was currently in had fourteen floors, a few of which were almost entirely made up of rarely used boardrooms.

            Tobirama worked primarily on the ninth floor, and Izuna on the sixth, though their paths often crossed in the kitchen on the seventh floor (the largest and only kitchen with a water cooler and a microwave), and the copier on the fourth floor (the only one that ran properly AND did colour).

            Tobirama had only been above his floor once, when he’d first started and been called to the boss’ office on the top floor. After that, he spent most of his time in his cubicle, in the kitchen on the seventh floor, or at the copier on the fourth floor. He hadn’t been to Izuna’s floor, and Izuna hadn’t been to his. In fact, he’d barely seen anything of the building. It irked him to know so little of his own workplace, but between the work itself and the hours, most days when he found himself thinking, ‘maybe I’ll take a look around’, he just ended up going home instead. The others told him that the place sucked anyway.

            As a kind of standing rule, no one stayed after dark. It was a rule that was strictly enforced during the first few weeks, up to and including someone actually waiting for Tobirama and _making_ him leave.

            After a while however, when it seemed like both Tobirama and Izuna had gotten it through their heads that they weren’t supposed to stay after dark, people stopped watching them. And 99% of the time, Tobirama was able to finish everything and be out of there long before the sun went down.

            In the months that he worked there, there was only one day that he hadn’t left before the sun set.

            It was a Friday, and Tobirama had resolved to stay late to finish a project that had been promised for Monday. Certainly, he could have come in on Saturday, but he’d lost track of time. He hadn’t meant to be there so late.

            There were a few other people on his floor, working to finish details on the same project, only one or two working on something else entirely, and he resigned himself to making coffee just to get himself through the work.

            Just before five, he went down to the kitchen to set up before everyone took a break. He always took the stairs for the exercise; he hated being stuck sitting all day.

            His footsteps rang out and bounced around the old stairwell, reflecting off the ugly white walls that looked wet in the luminescent light. Only a few flights of stairs. He shied away from the edge on habit, hand going to the wall instead as he reached the eighth floor. The railing was broken there, and it had unnerved him to feel open air so suddenly the first time he’d gone by. It always made him feel like he might fall, even though he knew he had fantastic balance (probably thanks to competing with Hashirama and the Uchiha brothers to walk on a balance beam by the ice cream shop every Thursday until he was sixteen). At this point though, he just went by it without looking and made his way down.

            Despite being the largest kitchen (and probably the only one actually used), the kitchen on the seventh floor was still crowded; the countertops, fridge and single table with chairs took up nearly all the available space, and the watercooler shoehorned into the back corner felt like an afterthought. The chairs were always left out and Tobirama kicked one back in without bothering to really look as he made his way by.

            The kitchen had been empty when he arrived, in fact the seventh floor itself only had one occupant, a sharp-eyed worker named Takatora. Tobirama had only spoken to him once; the man was tight-lipped and stern and tended to avoid making pointless conversation. Tobirama rather liked him.

            Takatora hadn’t looked up when Tobirama passed by, and they didn’t bother exchanging greetings. The only acknowledgement likely to come would be less coffee in a few minutes.

            Tobirama sighed as he pulled the pot out and tipped it over the sink. Was it really so hard to clean it out when it was empty? He washed it out and set it aside, opening the cupboard to the left for the beans.

            Beside him the faucet dripped. He frowned at it and tightened the handles, then turned back and went about setting up the coffeemaker. He hit start and the machine immediately began grinding the beans. When the grating racket had finally stopped, there was another drip.

            Really?

            He tightened the handles again. He might actually have to talk to maintenance about that.

            He let the machine run and leaned back against the counter. The best perk was obviously that he got fresh coffee right away. He watched the sink as he listened to the rhythmic dripping from the coffeemaker and found himself zoning out for a moment. The sink was still and silent.

            There was a thump at the door and he almost jumped. Thankfully, years of putting up with Hashirama had trained him not to react to these sorts of things.

            Izuna was in the doorway.

            “Ooh, coffee,” he said, completely ignoring any form of polite greeting.

            “Good afternoon,” Tobirama said flatly.

            “It is now,” Izuna said. He was pulling down his usual awful red mug and, after a second of thought, grabbed Tobirama’s usual mug as well.

            “I didn’t know you were still here,” Tobirama said.

            “Got a thing for Monday. Really stupid. I mean we would be done but _someone_ completely screwed up. I have no idea why they haven’t fired the guy.” Izuna leaned against the counter across from Tobirama.

            Tobirama made what he hoped was a sympathetic face.

            “You?” Izuna prompted. He was watching the timer on the coffee maker count down from two minutes.

            “Same, except ours is massive and no one is done any part of it,” Tobirama said.

            “Bummer,” Izuna said.

            When the timer hit zero Izuna had the pot out before the machine had even finished beeping. He poured himself a cup, and then Tobirama. It was things like that that made people think they were friends.

            “Oh, so did you hear about the fourth floor?” Izuna asked. He handed Tobirama his mug and went back to leaning against the counter.

            Tobirama frowned. He would prefer to go back up and keep working at this point. “What.”

            “Well, the guys on my floor all say it’s haunted,” Izuna said.

            Tobirama gave him a condescending look. “Of course they do. It’s the ‘fourth’ floor. Izuna, you’ve been on the fourth floor. We go there to copy things all the time.”

            “Yeah,” Izuna said. He sounded reluctant. “But it’s creepy.”

            “I suppose it is,” Tobirama said.

            “Ever been there alone, at night?” Izuna asked. His eyes were sparkling.

            Tobirama was reminded painfully of enduring Izuna’s ghost stories at sleepovers he hadn’t wanted to attend. Stories that inevitably terrified Hashirama, bored Madara, and annoyed Tobirama.

            “No.”

            “Well, don’t go. Allegedly, people have disappeared,” Izuna said. He waved a hand for dramatic effect.

            “Really,” Tobirama said.

            “You’re not going for it, are you.” Izuna sounded defeated.

            “No. You have yet to scare me,” Tobirama said.

            “Someday, Senju. Someday,” Izuna said. “Well, you’re probably jonesing to get back to work, so I’ll see you at…dinner, I guess. Work whore.”

            “You’re here too,” Tobirama reminded him. “Also, workaholic is a better word. Lunch boy.”

            “Coffee maker! Wait, that doesn’t mean what I want it to,” Izuna said. He frowned.

            Tobirama was already out the door and on his way back towards the stairwell, coffee mug cradled carefully.

            “Wait! I got one, um, damn it. Come back here!” Izuna called after him. But he didn’t bother coming after Tobirama. Izuna usually preferred to spend a while in the kitchen sipping coffee before he went back down to his own floor.

            Takatora barely glanced at him on his way by.

 

            Where Tobirama sat, he could see the old elevator directly in front of him - just visible over the wall of his cubicle. He was shoved nearly at the back, where it was freezing cold in the winter and scorching hot in the summer. The price he paid as an intern.

            This elevator had, for the most part, fallen into disuse in favour of the newer elevator that was much closer to the front doors. It worked alright, and there were a few people who used it often enough, but Tobirama could probably count those people on one hand.

            Tobirama had been working fairly steadily when the elevator chimed and opened up. He could see it open just above the wall to his cubicle, and he ignored it as he tried to focus on his work. This whole project was ridiculous. He had two BFs waiting to look at on related accounts, and the current proposal he was working on was coming along slowly. It would have been easier if he’d been sent the relevant information to begin with. But Shinra hadn’t sent it yet. So Tobirama had to work around it as best as he could.

            A few minutes passed and the elevator doors were still open. He glanced up at them. No one had gone past him. He peeked over the wall and saw that the elevator was empty. The doors were open, and the box was lit up but there was no one there. He frowned. It was probably malfunctioning. Another reason to take the stairs. He tried to put it out of his mind, even though the blank light where he expected the gray doors to be was a bit distracting.

            Over the course of the evening, a few of his fellow workers finished their portions, adding to the BF list, and left for the day. When six thirty rolled around, there were three people left including Tobirama. It was that time of year when the sun set late, and it made it seem as though there was so much more time left in the day. It disoriented him a bit. He felt like he’d been there all day already, and he had, but it felt so much longer somehow. Like two days wrapped in one.

            When his stomach growled obnoxiously, he was finally forced to stop for a break. It was already seven, no wonder he was hungry. He went down to the kitchen, intending to scrounge what was left in his lunch, and found that Izuna had brought sandwiches. He must have really needed to get out of the office for a bit.

            It wasn’t exactly a usual thing, for Izuna to bring him food, but it had happened often enough that he no longer bothered questioning him or his motives. And after the first few times of deliberately getting Tobirama’s order wrong and getting zero reaction, he’d given up and would just wordlessly shove the correctly made thing across the table.

            He supposed it was a testament to how often they’d worked together that they usually took their breaks at the same time without meaning to. Sometimes it came in handy. Other times it was annoying.

            The kitchen was basically empty when he arrived; Izuna was sitting at the table looking frustrated, and Takatora was on his way out.

            “What?” Tobirama asked as he sat down across from Izuna.

            Izuna slid a wrapped sandwich across the table at him. “Work sucks.”

            “Oh, that.” Tobirama unwrapped his sandwich and started in on it.

            “I’m the last guy on my floor,” Izuna complained. “Those bastards all just left me to finish the thing.”

            “But that’s what you do. That’s actually your job,” Tobirama said.

            “Yeah, well…it sucks,” Izuna said. He planted his face in one hand.

            “Are you close to finishing?” Tobirama asked between bites. He was definitely hungrier than he'd thought.

            “Pfft. No. I’ll be here forever!”

            Uchihas. Tobirama rolled his eyes at the outburst.

            “Don’t you roll your eyes at me,” Izuna said crossly. He brooded over his own mostly eaten sandwich.

            “I’ll be here all night too,” Tobirama offered.

            Izuna glanced up. “Maybe you can go to the fourth floor at night then.”

            “Pass,” Tobirama said.

            “Aw, come on. You scared?”

            “Of what? That it’s allegedly haunted? Who exactly is supposed to be haunting it?” Tobirama asked.

            Izuna opened his mouth, and then closed it again. “I actually don’t know.”

            “An evil stapler maybe,” Tobirama said.

            “The photo-copier comes to life at night,” Izuna said. He said it like he was serious.

            “What?”

            “I dunno. That’s what Kaoru said,” Izuna said defensively. "But she said she left after that."

            “So it’s an angry office worker. Or maybe the ghost of someone who couldn’t stop working,” Tobirama said. He picked at his sandwich. There was a tapping noise to his right.

            “Sounds like you,” Izuna muttered. Then, “What the hell. I’ve turned that off twice already.” Izuna stood up and went to the counter.

            It was the sink again. “I’ve had to turn it off a few times too. We should tell maintenance.”

            “Damn it.” Izuna turned the tap, screwing it shut as tight as he could by the looks of it. “Well, whatever. We can deal with it later. You know, I’ve never actually been here at night.”

            Tobirama thought about it for a moment. “Neither have I.”

            “Everyone always says ‘oh, don’t stay late’ then they give us mountains of work that are impossible to finish for the deadline. How are we not supposed to stay late?”

            “Everybody stays late,” Tobirama pointed out. Just, nobody ever stayed after dark.

            “Whatever.”

 

            On his way back upstairs, the light in the stairwell flickered off and then back on. In the brief instant it was off, Tobirama froze, one foot hovering in the air. The lights on the other levels were still on but the sudden darkness only seemed that much deeper because of it. And then, before he could even get particularly annoyed, the light came back on. It was barely off for a moment, but it still made Tobirama a little wary. The last thing he wanted was to fall down the stairs.

            The light stayed on then, as though it had never flickered.

            He hurried back up to his floor anyway.

            Time seemed to slide away then, and he barely spared a glance at the clock. He paused, however, when Shinra stopped at his desk on the way out.

            “Did you get my email?” Shinra asked.

            Tobirama opened his email to find a new one from him. “Yes, I did. Is that everything?”

            “Yep!” Shinra said happily. “That’s it.”

            “Thank god,” Tobirama said.

            “Well, I’m off then. Good luck! Don’t stay too late! Make sure you’re out before dark!” Shinra waved at him and practically skipped to the elevator across from Tobirama’s desk.

            “Right…” Tobirama watched him leave, more than a little jealous. Although he certainly wouldn’t have gone down that way. The fact that the elevator had been sitting there looking at him all day had made him a little annoyed at the thing. Oh well. It would be gone now.

            The elevator doors slid shut and he watched the lights above the door go down to the first floor. Then he turned his attention back to his computer and opened the files Shinra had sent him. And, oh he could kiss that man! This was going to make everything so much easier. He could actually be done within two hours. Maybe one if he really tried.

            Wait.

            He glanced around and found that he was the last person on his floor. Well, at least it would be quiet. He wondered if maybe he were the last person in the whole building. It was possible. He was really hoping he wasn’t, though. He didn’t want to have to set the security alarms on his way out. Really though, Izuna would likely have messaged him if he was leaving, so the odds were good he, at least, was still there.

            As if on cue, an email came through from Izuna that read ‘ _Are you still here?_ ’ in the subject line, and was empty in the body of the email. Tobirama pressed his lips together, and replied, putting his answer in the proper place, with a simple ‘ _Yes. Are you finished?_ ’

            Izuna replied that he was getting there and said if he finished first he would come up and torment Tobirama to make him work faster; Tobirama promised the same. And now he had some incentive to finish faster. Izuna could be awful when he put his mind to it.

            Tobirama had just turned back to his work when there a dinging sound. The elevator had arrived at his floor.

            There was no way that was Izuna. Not unless he’d been lying so he could try and scare Tobirama…which was totally something he would do. Tobirama already had the appropriate scowl on his face when the doors slid open.

            Inside, it was empty. He stared at it for a moment. How odd. Unless Shinra sent it back for some reason…? He waited for the doors to close.

            They didn’t.

            He guessed he’d have to mention that to maintenance as well. Hesitantly he went back to his work, glancing up occasionally to see those doors still open.

            After a good hour of work, he’d almost forgotten about it and was actually feeling good about his progress on the assignment. It was then that he received another email from Izuna.

            Damn it, was he done already? He opened the email to find ‘ _Dude, did you phone me?? Why?’_

            Tobirama frowned and sent back that no, he had not phoned him, and why would he? To which Izuna responded that maybe Tobirama had been trying to scare him. Which was ridiculous. That wasn’t exactly his style. Izuna’s confusion was palpable in the email exchange, and Tobirama supposed if he were trying to freak the other man out, this would be how to do it. Once he’d thoroughly convinced Izuna he’d done nothing he turned back to his work, though he spared a glance at the empty elevator before he did. Maybe Izuna had sent it up.

            Finally, at 9:45, he was done. Well. Almost completely. He still needed to print out the official proposal. He debated leaving it for Monday, but decided against it. If he did it today, then it would be waiting for his boss already and he wouldn’t have to worry about it all weekend.

            It would be nice to have a weekend off.

            He sent it to the printer on his own floor and went to collect his pages; he needed four copies in all.

            When he got to the printer however, only one sheet sat waiting for him. The printer was off. He took his sheet, and everything seemed in order on it, except that there was only one. He frowned at the printer and pressed the ‘On’ button. Nothing happened. He checked the plug, and it seemed to be fine. He fiddled around with it for a few minutes and got nowhere.

            For whatever reason, it just wasn’t working. Great. Was everything in this old dump of a building broken? At this rate, maintenance was going to think he was deliberately breaking everything for attention.

            Well, he’d just have to pop down to the fourth floor and make his copies. It was then that he became aware that it was dark out, and only because Izuna’s earlier comment came floating back to him.

            Haunted? Please.

            Tobirama went right to the stairwell, not pausing to glance at the waiting elevator. Clutching his sheet gently in one hand, he took the stairs two at a time. He was so close to being done for the day. He went down past the kitchen on the seventh floor; down past Izuna’s floor, where he was sure the other man was working away and rushing to finish; and right down to the fourth floor.

            The fourth floor was empty when he pushed open the stairwell door. The lights were off, and Tobirama had to admit that it made it a bit creepy. He hit the light switch by the door, and the side he was on lit up, but all the cubicles remained immersed in darkness. He really hated these old buildings.

            He followed along the wall, making his way to the room at the end (which corresponded to the kitchen on the seventh floor, and the printing room on his own). Whoever planned this building hated the employees, he decided. He turned on the light to the small room and went in. The copier was off, and there was a brief moment of apprehension where he was afraid that it also wouldn’t turn on, but thankfully, it did.

            He put the sheet in, selected the number of copies he wanted and then waited.

            The copier spat out a blank page, then a copy of Tobirama’s page. Then another blank.

            Really?

            Couldn’t something _please_ just work for him?

            He lowered the number to two and hit OK.

            Another copy came out, and then a blank. He picked up the sheet that had come out properly, and then frowned at it. There was a black line running down the page, obscuring enough that he wouldn’t dare submit it. He hit for two copies again and tossed it in the recycling.

            Four sheets came out, only one of which actually had the document on it, the others were blank. Or at least, he’d thought they were until he pulled them out. There was another black line on one, then several lines on the next two sheets, and the document itself was actually hard to read because of the number of lines running down the page. What the hell?

            Tobirama opened the scanner and lifted his sheet of paper. There was nothing else there. He turned the copier off and back on, and set it for two more copies. He was honestly thinking of giving up if the thing wouldn’t work for him. The copier started spitting out papers, and Tobirama was suddenly worried he’d hit twenty-two instead of just two, and had to hit the cancel button twice before it stopped. He pulled out the wad of paper (oops) and found two perfect copies of his work.

            Thank god, he was done.

            The next copy down had that black line.

            And the one after that had a few more.

            The next had even more.

            He flipped through the papers, frowning at them. Honestly, it reminded him of hair. Long black hair. A chill crept up his spine, but he shook it off. Probably someone had just gotten it stuck inside the copier. Well. Tell it to maintenance.

            He reached out for the cover to get his original back and froze. Hanging out from the copy bed was long black hair.

            No. No way.

            Disgusting.

            How?

            He reached forward, and was frustrated at the way his hand shook slightly. He opened the cover with a fingertip.

            Nothing.

            Of course it was nothing. Most likely his mind was just playing tricks on him. He snatched the sheet out, and turned the copier off. He made sure the unusable sheets were all in the recycling, and hurried out, turning off the light behind him. He picked up his pace on the way to the stairs. He was suddenly thinking that maybe he would just go up to Izuna’s floor and see if he needed to drop anything off at the boss’ office. It wouldn’t hurt to go together. Izuna might laugh at him but…

            There was a noise behind him. A dragging sound, like something heavy and boneless sliding roughly on carpet.

            Tobirama, curious to a fault, turned back to look.

            Something was in the doorway to the copier room, sliding out and dragging long hair.

            His eyes widened and something in his gut told him that he really didn’t want that thing to catch up to him.

            It turned its head to look at him, and bloodshot eyes met his. She – It? – looked so…angry. He’d never seen anything look at him like that. There was an instinctual panic curling in him, and he didn’t need to be a good judge of character to know that that thing meant him harm.

            There was something like manic glee around its wide mouth. Momentary delight at spotting something with which to amuse itself, was the thought that crossed Tobirama’s mind. It reached out with one long fingered hand and pulled itself out further, beginning to angle towards him.

            That was it. He took off running towards the stairwell, not bothering to shut off the light behind him, and slammed the door without looking back.

            He hesitated with the closed door behind him. Should he leave and phone Izuna to tell him to get out and meet him in the lobby? Or go up and get him himself? Was that thing trapped on the fourth floor, or could it go anywhere? The longer he hesitated, the more agitated he felt.

            There was a click. For a moment he was afraid it was the door, but it hadn’t budged.

            He looked around but saw nothing immediately wrong.

            There was another click.

            Lights! He glanced up and then down, and saw it. Two floors below, the lights were out. In the pitch blackness he swore there was movement.

            Well that settled it. He bolted up the stairs as carefully as he dared and made for Izuna’s floor. There was another click behind him and he knew without looking that it was on the third floor.

            It was playing with him.

            He shoved open the door and nearly ran into Izuna, who was halfway there.

            “What the hell, man?” Izuna asked.

            Tobirama realized he was still clutching his papers, and put them down on the nearest desk, leaning heavily against it. His eyes darted to the closed stairwell door, then back to Izuna.

            Izuna was looking at him cautiously. “Are you okay?”

            “Yes,” Tobirama lied. “I just…saw something.”

            He willed himself to calm down. Izuna’s presence reassured him somewhat, but he couldn't stop himself from glancing down towards the stairwell again. Not that it necessarily had to come from there…

            He twitched and looked around the office quickly. Nothing.

            “Right. So you email me, telling me to meet you on the fourth floor, then come running in here like a bat out of hell.” Izuna said slowly. “Are you confused? Did you work too hard?”

            “Email-? I wasn’t at my computer, Izuna, I was on the fourth floor. I didn’t send you anything,” Tobirama said.

            “Are you trying to scare me?” Izuna asked. He sounded almost accusing, but his eyes were full of something like concern.

            “No,” Tobirama said. Oh, it probably wasn’t going to be easy to get him to believe him now. His eyes scanned the room again. Was it gone? Was it just waiting?

            “Okay. Well, are you done? Can we go now?” Izuna asked.

            “God, yes,” Tobirama said.

            “Do you need to take those somewhere?” He motioned at the sheets strewn across the desk Tobirama was leaning against.

            “No, just leave them. Let’s just go,” Tobirama said. He stood up on unsteady feet.

            “Wow, are you sure you’re okay?”

            “…No. I just want to leave.”

            “Wait, you said you saw something?” Izuna asked.

            Tobirama frowned, he had said something like that, hadn’t he. Damn it.

            “What was it?” Izuna asked. He perked up. "A ghost?"

            “I don’t know. Maybe. I don’t care, I just want to leave,” Tobirama insisted. He was incredibly annoyed at himself, and at whatever had actually managed to scare him.

            “Alright, alright.” Izuna held up his hands in a placating gesture. He turned towards the stairwell.

            Panic shot through Tobirama and he grabbed Izuna’s arm and pulled him back. “Not there.”

            “Why not?” Izuna asked. "You always take the stairs."

            “That’s…Let’s take the elevator,” Tobirama said. He couldn’t help but imagine that thing waiting on the other side of the door. It had to be up to their floor by now.

            Izuna was searching his face with his eyes. “O…kay…Old one or new one?”

            “New one,” he responded far too quickly.

            Izuna turned towards the front of the building, waiting for Tobirama so they could walk side by side. “Never thought anything would scare you, Senju. Must have been pretty bad.”

            Tobirama didn’t answer. It would have been nice to be able deny that he’d been scared, but the feeling in his gut when he’d locked eyes with that thing had been a kind of primal fear. He recognised a predator when he saw one.

            Everything was quiet, and Tobirama started to think that maybe it was over. That maybe, just being with someone else was enough to turn the thing off of him, when there was a bursting pop from behind. He winced.

            “What the hell?” Izuna asked. He turned around and Tobirama turned with him, even though he really didn’t want to.

            The lightbulb at the door to the stairwell had burst and there were a few sparks dancing on the carpet. The door to the stairwell creaked open.

            “What…?” was all Izuna managed to say.

            “That was on the fourth floor with me. Come on.” Tobirama linked an arm around Izuna’s elbow and pulled, dragging him towards the elevator.

            Izuna stumbled slightly, still looking backwards. “What the fuck is that?”

            “I don’t know. I don’t care. We’re leaving,” Tobirama said. They were at the elevator in record time and he hammered the button. God, he really hoped it worked fast enough.

            “It’s coming over here,” Izuna said, panic rising in his voice.

            Tobirama looked back just as the next lightbulb burst as the thing crawled beneath it.

            The sound it made as it pulled itself along the floor was like wet meat slapping and dragging. It wasn’t moving quickly; It didn’t need to.

            The elevator doors opened, and Tobirama shoved Izuna in, backing in and reaching for the door close button but Izuna was already mashing it. The doors slid shut and the thing was still halfway across the floor from them. Thank god.

            Izuna hit the first floor button, and the elevator lurched into motion.

            “Oh my god,” Izuna said. “What the hell?”

            “I know,” was all Tobirama could say.

            Something felt wrong.

            The button for the ninth floor lit up. Tobirama looked at the button panel at the same time as Izuna. The first floor was selected, but the elevator had apparently decided to ignore this fact, and was taking them up instead.

            “What?” Izuna hit the first floor button again, and then a few more times for good measure.

            Tobirama leaned against the back wall as the elevator stopped on his own floor. Izuna hit the first floor button once more, but nothing happened.

            Tobirama gripped the railing along the back wall so tightly he couldn’t feel his fingers. There was no way he was chancing the stairwell again.

            They would have to take the other elevator.

            He wondered if it was still open and waiting for him.

            Izuna backed against the wall next to him, clearly anticipating the same thing: that the doors would slide open and the thing would be there waiting for them.

            He didn’t know what It wanted, and he didn’t want to know. He refused to acknowledge the idea at the back of his head, that It wanted them. But why?  Would It eat them? Did It need to eat? Did It just want to hurt something?

            He really just wanted to go home.

            The doors slid open.

            The whole floor was just as it had been. It was empty. Tobirama had been intending to come back initially, and had left the lights on.

            Izuna was clutching his chest. “Thank god.”

            Hesitantly, they stepped out; each looking in a different direction. The whole floor was silent.     

            “Other elevator or stairs?” Izuna asked, his voice pitched low.

            “Ugh. Neither,” Tobirama said. Uneasiness sat in his stomach, weighing him down.

            “I’m perfectly fine with jumping out the window. That seems fastest,” Izuna said. He bumped against Tobirama, sticking close as they moved a little further into the room.

            On the other end, past Tobirama’s computer, the old elevator was still open.

            “Well, the other elevator’s here. Should we chance it?” Izuna asked.

            “It’s been there like that all day,” Tobirama said.

            “Oh. Well, that is not comforting. Better than the stairs though?”

            “I hope so,” Tobirama said.

            They made their way slowly across the floor, nearly back to back in their attempt to see everywhere at once.

            “Where is it?” Izuna muttered.

            Tobirama bumped into him. “I really don’t want to know.”

            “ _What_ is it?”

            Tobirama made a noise. “How should I know? It doesn’t seem…”

            “Human?”

            “That.” Tobirama shuddered.

            As they neared Tobirama’s computer, he could see that his email program was open, and an email to Izuna was displayed on the screen. It read, ‘Got something to show you. Meet me on the fourth floor.’

            “Are you seriously telling me you didn’t send that?” Izuna asked.

            His voice came from right over Tobirama’s shoulder, and Tobirama jumped slightly.

            “Of course not,” he snapped. “Why would I send something like that?”

            “Alright, calm down,” Izuna said. He was just as jittery and had jumped when Tobirama snapped at him.

            He didn’t even bother shutting down his computer, just pushed past it.

            They reached the other elevator. It was still empty, and somehow that didn’t feel like a good thing.

            They filed in and Izuna went for the buttons, only to pause. “Uh…”

            Tobirama looked over. Instead of listing the usual fourteen floors, there were only six buttons and they ranged from B1-B6.

            Their building didn’t even have a basement – all the old boiler and air conditioning equipment was crammed into the back of the first floor. And there definitely weren’t six basements.

            “What do we do?” Izuna asked. His finger hovered above B1. “I’m pretty sure it isn’t supposed to be like this.”

            “It’s not,” Tobirama said.

            The elevator doors slid shut, trapping them in.

            Oh, so now they close?

            “B1 is like the highest, so maybe that’s the first floor?” Izuna tried.

            “Maybe. Or the numbers correspond to something else. For all we know, B6 is the highest,” Tobirama said.

            How the hell were they supposed to get out?

            His eyes scanned the small box they were stuck in. There was a small door in the roof, but there was no way he was going through there unless his life depended on it. He would also probably need Izuna to boost him.

            “Should we just try them all?” Izuna asked.

            There was a dragging sound on the other side of the door and they both froze, eyes meeting as Izuna pressed B1. Damn the consequences.

            The elevator lurched to a start, moving down. The overhead light flickered, and Tobirama inched closer to Izuna, not daring to take his eyes off the small door above them.

            The elevator seemed to go down for a long time. The overhead light dimmed above them, giving off a dusky, dim light that barely reached the corners of the small elevator. They stood close together in the middle, away from the shadows, and against the wall, as far from the door as possible.

            After what seemed like an eternity, the elevator came to a halt. It had felt like far more than nine or ten floors to Tobirama.

            A voice spoke above them, “Now on floor B1.” It was stilted like a recording, but there had never been any automated system like that. Especially not in the old elevator.

            Izuna leaned forward slightly, ahead of Tobirama. He was watching the doors intently.

            The doors opened slowly, jerkily, as though something was caught in their tracks.

            Ahead was darkness.

            Tobirama couldn’t make out much beyond where the dim light spilled out. The floor was grey and glistening, discoloured in a few areas. It actually did look like a basement. Or at least, it was similar enough. Izuna heaved an exasperated sigh and pulled out his cell phone.

            “No service,” he said. “But…” he turned on his flashlight app.

            Izuna held his phone up, shining it around the room. The walls were far off, out of sight, and the room seemed vast. The ceiling above was an off white, spider-webbed with thick cracks. A heavy black liquid ran along the ceiling and oozed from the openings, dripping down to pool on the floor.

            Way in the distance, barely visible by the light from the phone and only the call buttons glinting, was another elevator.

            Tobirama looked at Izuna. “Chance another floor, or try for that elevator?”

            “Fuck. Um…I really don’t want to go down more,” Izuna said. “Where are we?’

            “I have no idea,” Tobirama said. He was trying very hard to remain calm, though his heart was pounding in his chest.

            “Do you think It lives here?” Izuna whispered.

            “Why would you say that?” Tobirama asked, exasperated. He really didn’t want to think about that.

            “Sorry,” Izuna muttered. “I don’t want to go down. Let’s try across. How bad could it be?”

            Famous last words.

            Tobirama held his breath and nodded. They stepped out, taking up their almost back to back positions. Tobirama pulled out his own phone and turned on the flashlight.

            The room seemed so…empty.

            Once out of the elevator he could make out a wall along the left. At the very least, something was there. A wall covered in…windows? Pictures? He couldn’t tell. He glanced back and saw something similar on the other side.

            The light from the elevator only stretched so far, and as soon as they stepped beyond it’s range, the elevator doors slid closed, plunging them into darkness with only the light from their phones.

            Izuna turned back towards the elevator immediately, shining his light towards it. There was nothing there now. Just a grey wall covered with large frames. The same black ooze was hanging from the frames, like a melted painting.

            Something hit Tobirama’s shoulder and he flinched, but it was only the blackness dripping from the ceiling. Not that that was good in any way. Just that he’d been expecting something worse. He picked up the pace a bit, and Izuna matched him.

            The stillness was starting to become unsettling. Where was that thing?

            For a few minutes the only sound was their breathing, and footsteps, and an odd glooping sound when the black fluid draped itself over the floor or their shoulders. Tobirama was sure his heartbeat was unreasonably loud, and he forced himself to breathe steadily and try to slow it down. Panic would make him careless. He needed a level head if they wanted to get out.

            They never should have left the elevator.

            They never should have stayed after dark.

            Tobirama stepped in something and grimaced, it was wet and it soaked through his shoe. He shone his light down and wasn’t surprised to see a puddle of something. At first he assumed it was a larger pool of whatever hung from the ceiling, but the consistency was wrong. It was too…thin? And the colour. It was more of a dark red, although it almost looked black in the light from his phone.

            “Gross,” Izuna said. He shook his own foot slightly.

            The red puddle stretched all the way across the room from the left wall to the right as far as they could see, and it went almost right up to the elevator.

            “It’s not like we can go back now.” With a muttered curse, Izuna stepped in and the splash echoed off the distant walls. They both froze again.

            The echoes died down and silence returned.

            Tobirama followed him in carefully. The puddle grew slightly deeper, and his dress shoes were absolutely ruined. As were his pants as the water climbed almost to his knees. They were moving so slowly now, and the depth of the water made Tobirama nervous.

            What if something was in there?

            If It dragged him down, would Izuna be able to find him? Would he be able to find Izuna if he went under?

            His breath quickened and he reached back to fist at Izuna’s suit jacket, just in case. Izuna twitched but didn’t say anything. Gradually, the water became shallower as they reached the edge. The other elevator still seemed so far away. Tobirama could have sworn the edge of the water was almost at the elevator when they were on the other side of the pool. It was like the elevator had slid back, the room elongating to keep them in just a bit longer.

            There were bubbles off to the left, in the deepest part of the water and Tobirama’s gaze snapped to them. And there, head just high enough for those bloodshot eyes to be visible, there It was. Watching them. He couldn’t bring himself to shine his light directly at It. He made a noise that he would deny to his dying day was a whimper, and tugged at Izuna’s jacket.

            “Izuna,” he whispered.

            The head submerged and there were no more bubbles. It was gone.

            “What?” Izuna asked. He turned back, worry tight on his face.

            “It was in the water,” Tobirama said, voice low. His light now fixed on the spot where It had been.

            “Fuck.” Izuna shone his light over the water, but there was no sign of It.

            They moved forward, trying to be quiet but their shoes squelched on the floor, and every sound made Tobirama flinch.

            Somewhere beneath the squelching, came another noise.

            That same dragging sound. Wet and heavy.

            Tobirama shone the light around the room. Nothing. He couldn’t see it anywhere.

            They were almost at the elevator, and the dragging sound grew louder, but he still couldn’t see the source.

            “Where is it?” Izuna muttered.

            Tobirama reached the elevator first, and hit the button. It pushed in like an eyeball squishing in the socket and he retracted his hand quickly. The doors opened, and it looked like the newer elevator, even if the light was as dim as the other elevator had been.

            They hurried in, and Tobirama hit the door-close button. Between the narrowing opening of the doors they could now see the thing sliding up, dragging Its misshapen body, hair hanging around Its mockery of a face. Tobirama backed against the opposite wall, still in range of the buttons. Izuna was somewhere beside him, one arm stretched out towards him in a gesture he didn’t quite understand.

            He couldn’t take his eyes off of It as It slid up. Had It ever even been human? Its mouth hung open, revealing several rows (like a shark, the thought came unbidden) of brown teeth, and It pressed Its face against the closing doors, bloodshot eyes skipping from one to the other before It was closed out. The weight of Its gaze made him dizzy.

            The button panel now had all fourteen floors in addition to the basement levels. Tobirama hit the first floor button more forcefully than was necessary and tried to back further away, as though the wall might swallow him and keep him safe. There was a thump at the door, and Izuna’s arm was across his chest for a moment, like he was trying to hold him back.

            What if the thing tried to push through the doors? Would they hold?

            The elevator jerked violently to a start, upsetting their balance and Tobirama fell in his corner, catching himself against the wall. Izuna had fallen backwards against the back wall and away from him, gripping the railing for support.

            The display showed them to be between B1 and the first floor for what seemed to be a long time. The light in the elevator was enough that they put their phones away for the moment. It wasn’t as though they were getting any service anyway. Tobirama wondered if the elevator weren't actually stuck, but he swore he could feel it moving.

            There was a loud bang on the roof of the elevator.

            Tobirama looked up to see a safety hatch in the ceiling. “Fuck me.” There was no way out.

            Izuna squawked, eyes also glued to the ceiling. It would have been funny in any other situation.

            The elevator had stopped.

            The doors began to open and Tobirama could see the first floor. The elevator had stopped almost halfway up, and while the top part opened onto the first floor, the bottom opened into blackness. Relief flooded through him, and then froze in his veins when the door above opened. It was pulled roughly, leaving gouge marks in the ceiling.

            Tobirama looked back at the opening to the first floor. He could actually _see_ the front doors, and out through the glass there were streetlights and safety.

            They could make it.

            He reached the gap at the same moment as Izuna and he pushed the other man first.

            “Go,” he told him. He watched as the thing lowered Itself in upside down. Its eyes were slits as It watched them and It flailed out, long fingers brushing against Tobirama’s cheek as he leaned to avoid Its touch. Izuna braced against his shoulder with a knee as he pushed himself out and Tobirama tried to help push him through.

            And then he was out.

            “Come on, come on, come on,” Izuna was saying from behind him.

            Tobirama really didn’t want to turn his back on that thing, but he was terrified that if he waited another second, the elevator would plummet and trap him with It. Leave him in the darkness for It to do whatever It wanted with him.

            Izuna was reaching down for him and he took his offered hand. He had to jump up a bit, and then lie flat to slide through.

            There was a sound like a sack of meat hitting the floor and the whole elevator shuddered and slid down just a bit, narrowing the distance between the roof and Tobirama’s back.

            There was a shriek, some ungodly noise like grinding meat and bottomless anger and it occurred to him that this was the first time It had made any noise. He preferred the silence, that sound made him feel sick.

            Something wrapped around Tobirama’s lower leg, pulling him a bit further back towards the elevator. It hurt like hell, like needles digging in. He tried to kick back at It, but It hung heavily to one side, out of reach. It was holding him back.

            Izuna was wide eyed in front of him, pulling hard. “Don’t look. Just…push.”

            So he did. He pushed with his one hand to help Izuna pull him out. He emerged from the elevator, with the thing still holding on to him. Its grip had loosened and when he glanced back, It was hanging on by one arm, long fingers curled around his leg. Izuna hauled him forward, completely free of the doors, and then quickly stood and stomped on the things arm.

            There was the sound of bone splintering, and another piercing shriek. It released Tobirama, allowing him to inch back and away from It.

            It was heaving itself up through the gap on its splintered arm, face pressing through as It tried to crawl up and follow them. Tobirama lashed out with his good leg, hitting Its splintered arm and glancing off Its face. It was enough to loosen Its grip and make It fall back. When It hit the floor, the impact made the elevator slide down even further. It probably wouldn’t be able to fit through the gap now.

            It must have realized this as well, because It let out a wail so full of hatred it terrified Tobirama to his core. Ears ringing, he hauled himself up and Izuna ducked under his shoulder to offer support.

            They hit the front doors at a run, not even bothering to activate the alarm on the way out. God help whoever tried to rob the place.

            Normally, Tobirama would bus to and from work, and Izuna would too, except when he was able to use his brother’s car. Izuna was heading for the parking lot, and Tobirama was seriously glad not to have to bus right now, even if his pride insisted he was fine.

            Izuna grabbed at his pockets and looked horrified until Tobirama reached into the pocket on the side he was pressed against and pulled out the keys.

            “Oh thank fuck,” Izuna breathed. He opened the passenger side door first, almost pushing Tobirama in, then hurried to the other side and climbed in.

            They pulled out of the lot, and if Izuna was driving a little faster than the speed limit, Tobirama wasn’t going to say anything.

            Tobirama wanted to look back as they pulled away, but everything in his being was telling him not to. He was pretty sure he would see that thing plastered against one of the windows, watching them with Its eyes full of hate.

            “Oh my god.” Izuna breathed.

            Tobirama leaned back heavily, closing his eyes for a moment.

            “I can’t believe we made it out,” Izuna said.

            “I know,” was all Tobirama managed to say.

            “Wow. Okay. We’re good.” Izuna paused. “We’re going to my place. Don’t argue.”

            “Why?” Tobirama asked. As he asked it occurred to him that because of the hour, Hashirama might not be home, it was date night after all. And he really didn’t want to be alone. Maybe Madara wasn’t home and Izuna didn’t want to be alone either. He really couldn’t blame him if that were the case.

            “Because,” Izuna said.

            Tobirama’s leg throbbed and he hissed at the pain. He leaned down to look at it and the shifting of the fabric burned. He was sure he was bleeding, but the pant leg was already stained red, and he couldn’t see the damage properly through the tatters of fabric.

            “Leave it,” Izuna told him.

            That was probably a good idea. Wouldn’t want to make it worse when he could barely make out the details in the dark of the car.

            They arrived at the apartment Izuna shared with his brother in record time, and Izuna insisted on supporting him up the one flight of stairs to the door.

            As it turned out, Madara was home, sitting on the couch, watching something or other on the TV. He startled when they came in. Tobirama couldn’t blame him. They probably looked awful. There was black ooze hanging over Izuna’s shoulders and he was sure he was covered as well; not to mention they were both red up to the knees, and Tobirama was definitely bleeding.

            “Leave your shoes,” Izuna said. The squelching of their shoes on the hardwood floor made Tobirama wrinkle his nose.

            “Izuna? What – are you alright? Did something happen?” Madara was up and following after them, panic rising in his voice.

            “We’re fine,” Izuna said loudly. Then more quietly, “we’ll be fine.”

            Tobirama wondered if that was meant for him or Izuna himself.

            Izuna took him into the bathroom and sat him on the edge of the tub. He rankled. He didn’t like being treated like he was helpless. Izuna kicked off his soggy shoes and tossed them into the bathtub, and then his socks. Before Tobirama could even reach for his own, Izuna was on his knees pulling his shoes off.

            There was something guilty in his face and Tobirama thought maybe he understood. Maybe Izuna felt guilty because he’d gone out first and Tobirama had gotten hurt. It didn’t matter to Tobirama. They’d both gotten out in the end. He let Izuna have his way.

            Madara was in the doorway, watching his brother.

            “What happened?” he asked. “Is that blood?”

            “Yes,” Tobirama said. It hurt when Izuna peeled the sock off of his injured leg.

            “Can you get the first aid kit?” Izuna asked.

            “Fine…but you both owe me an explanation,” Madara said. He narrowed his eyes and stalked off.

            Izuna took hold of the bottom of his pant leg. “Don’t look.”

            Tobirama frowned at him. “Why not?”

            “Just…trust me for a second.”

            Tobirama exhaled through his nose and tipped his head back. It was worse when Izuna rolled the fabric up his leg and his eyes clenched shut as the fabric dragged in open cuts.

            “What is that?” Madara asked. His voice was suddenly very close and it made Tobirama flinch.

            “Shut up,” Izuna said. He tugged at the fabric and Tobirama felt something slide in his cut. “Here.”

            Tobirama hissed at the pain.

            “You think that’s bad, wait until he sterilizes it,” Madara said. He sounded even closer and Tobirama wondered if he were sitting beside him on the edge of the tub.

            He opened his eyes a touch to find he was right; Madara was next to him, watching Izuna work. Izuna was bent over Tobirama’s leg in such a way that he couldn’t see what he was doing.

            “Wow. Thank you so very much for your help,” Tobirama said. He meant for it to come out bitter, but it sounded strained.

            “What happened?” Madara asked again.

             Izuna made a dismissive gesture. “We were at work. Why don’t you tell him and distract yourself?”

            Tobirama frowned.

            “You were at work. Pretty sure you both have desk jobs,” Madara said.

            The burn of antiseptic made Tobirama’s face scrunch up in pain. He gritted his teeth against it. “We do. But tell that to...whatever that was.”

            “Burglar?” Madara asked.

            Izuna snorted.

            “I wish,” Tobirama said. “It was a…I don’t know. It doesn’t matter. You won’t believe us anyway.”

            “It was a person,” Madara said. His hands were in his lap, fists closed like he was holding onto something.

            “Not exactly,” Izuna said. He began wrapping gauze around Tobirama’s leg. “Sorry, but regular band-aids aren’t gonna cut it. Lucky you don’t need stitches, really.”

            “You’re not a doctor,” Madara said flatly.

            “I took a course in first aid!” Izuna said.

            “It’s true, he’s on the list of people to call if you’re hurt,” Tobirama said. “Lord help us all.”

            “Hey!” Izuna said. He tied off the gauze. “There.” He sat back, satisfied with his work.

            Tobirama moved his foot around, frowning at the ache. “Think it’ll scar?”

            Izuna blanched. “I hope not.”

            “Your face is bleeding too,” Madara informed Tobirama.

            “It’s not bad though,” Izuna said. “Just need to clean it.” He soaked something in the antiseptic and reached out.

            Tobirama took it from him and pressed it against his cheek where it stung.

            “What do you want me to do with this?” Madara waved a fist at his brother.

            “Burn it,” Izuna said. His face darkened. He turned to Tobirama. “We are never staying there after dark again. Or going anywhere alone. Or going on the fucking elevator.”

            “Agreed. Although the stairwell isn't a great option either,” Tobirama said. His eyes followed Madara’s hands. “What do you have?”

            Madara looked from Izuna to Tobirama. “He’s gonna know when he changes the bandage anyway.”

            Madara opened his hand to show Tobirama a tooth resting in his palm.

            Tobirama flinched back from it. “That was in…?”

            Izuna was scowling. “Yeah.”

            “Ugh, so that…It was biting me when…”

            “Told you not to look,” Izuna said, a little more sympathetically,

            “Oh god. I think I’m going to be sick,” Tobirama said.

            “But see, this is a human tooth, so who bit you?” Madara asked. “Seriously, it’s a desk job.”

            “There was a thing. I’ll explain later,” Izuna said. “You’re staying here tonight, by the way.”

            Tobirama looked at Izuna for a moment. Even with the adrenaline burning off, his mind still felt alert. He was pretty sure he wouldn’t be sleeping that night. He supposed it was the same for Izuna.

            Madara left the room for a moment.

            “I suppose so,” Tobirama answered after a considerable pause.

            Izuna considered him for a moment, and then left the room, no doubt to change into something more comfortable.

            Madara stuck his head back in and threw something at Tobirama. “Here. Anything else you need?”

            Tobirama unfolded the lump to find an old t-shirt and a pair of shorts. He suppressed a smile. “Just my brother.”

            “He’ll flip if you don’t come home. I’ll call him.” Madara disappeared again.

            Tobirama left the door open just a crack and changed quickly. He had a feeling he’d be avoiding being alone as much as possible for the next little while.

            And oh god. He could pretend it was okay now all he wanted, but in the back of his mind, he knew that place was waiting for him on the other end of the weekend.


	2. Something In The Dark

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> After that, Tobirama and Izuna developed a buddy system to ensure they were almost never alone.
> 
> But even that doesn't always help.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This was originally part of the first chapter, and also shorter, but there was a serious case of Ending Fatigue, so I moved it to its own chapter. 
> 
> I think it does an okay job of wrapping things up, although it probably creates more questions than it answers.
> 
> Enjoy!

            After that, Tobirama and Izuna developed a buddy system to ensure they were almost never alone.

            Madara and Hashirama had been skeptical when they'd tried to explain what had happened. Neither of them were inclined to think their brothers were lying, but they also weren't prone to believing in ghosts, no matter how frightening Hashirama found them. It almost made it easier for Tobirama and Izuna to convince themselves nothing too serious had happened. Over the course of the weekend they even managed to convince themselves to stay on to the end of the internship. After all, it wasn't for that much longer. They could make it.

            On the first Monday back, the entire building seemed hostile and it felt like a slow suffocation just to walk in. They’d paused in the doorway. There was the elevator, the new one, just sitting there perfectly fine. Like it hadn’t been halfway through the floor just three days earlier. Tobirama looked from the elevator to the stairwell and then locked eyes with Izuna. Nothing seemed like a good option, but since they couldn’t fly, and it was bright and blinding outside, maybe it would be okay. When Ayato pushed past them to enter the elevator, they’d decided to take the chance and got on with him.

            There were only fourteen buttons. They’d each hit their floor and stood back. Ayato was giving them the side eye.

            “Don’t think I’ve ever seen you on an elevator, Senju,” Ayato said.

            “I twisted my ankle,” Tobirama answered, eyes fixed on the doors ahead of him.

            His leg been rather sore and it had lead to him limping just a bit. Following Hashirama’s fussing he had allowed his brother to take him to a doctor. Admittedly, when he’d seen the gashes firsthand he’d been a little concerned, but they were shallow, and according to the doctor would heal just fine. The bite mark was a bit deeper. A gnarled ring that was only recognizable as a bite because he knew that was what it was supposed to be. There was a serious chance it might scar. He didn’t enjoy that thought.

            “That sucks,” Ayato said.

            “I’m here for sympathy,” Izuna said, despite not being asked. He leaned back, idly glancing up and then froze. He reached out and poked Tobirama.

            When Tobirama looked up, he saw that the door in the roof was gone. There were a few gouges around it.

            Ayato gave a low whistle. “Well, hell. Looks like maintenance has their work cut out. Might wanna take the other elevator.”

            Tobirama had never been happier to have Ayato as a supervisor, because that meant that they were on the elevator together the entire time. He didn’t know what he would have done if he’d been left alone.

            The rest of the day passed just fine. And both Tobirama and Izuna were carefully never alone. But the next day, when Izuna had decided that a five minute trip to the bathroom would be fine, the lights had flickered off for the briefest of moments. When they came back on, nothing was there. Then when he’d been washing his hands, long, pale sharp-edged fingers had curled out of the open drain. He’d panicked and bolted, grabbing paper towel in a rush. Later that day he’d embarrassingly messaged Tobirama to tell him to go to the bathroom with him. Tobirama had refused until Izuna had mentioned the fingers, and then he’d relented and came down.

            After that, it had been days with no incident, and Tobirama’s leg had stopped hurting. He and Izuna had been taking the elevator together everyday, and even Shinra had been poking fun at him for never taking the stairs anymore.

            It was Friday, a full week later, and both elevators were occupied and on different floors. Nothing had happened for a few days, and Tobirama had plucked up the courage to try the stairs. He was only going to the seventh floor after all.

            He had almost made it down, only one flight of stairs left, when the lights clicked off. The darkness was thick and all encompassing.

            His stomach clenched. There was silence around him, but he knew that wouldn’t last.

            There was a sudden thump and drag. He knew that sound.

            It seemed distant. Was It on the fourth floor? Was It coming from the first floor again?

            He was only one flight away from the door to the seventh floor. He could make it, easy. But he couldn’t see. He started down as quick as he dared, and a piercing pain shot through his leg, where It had bitten him. His foot skidded on a stair and he had to grab the railing for balance.

            The speed of the dragging sound picked up. Oh god. It was moving so fast. He wouldn’t get away this time, he was sure of it. What would be left of him in the end? Would he just be gone?

            The door opened ahead of him, cutting light into the darkness. For a split second, he was afraid that It would be there, mocking him, but instead Takatora stood in the doorway. He glanced down and then turned towards Tobirama. His eyes widened just a touch and he reached out a hand.

            “You might want to hurry,” he said calmly.

            Tobirama didn’t need to be told twice. Now that he could see the stairs he was down in a flash. His leg ached even though the cuts had all but healed. The dragging came alarmingly fast and as soon as he reached Takatora, the man pulled him through the doorway so quickly and violently they almost toppled to the floor together.

            Takatora slammed the door and Tobirama stepped awkwardly back from where he’d been flattened against the man’s chest. A few people looked over, but lost interest quickly when Takatora threw a glare around the room. His eyes were ice cold. A few people actually turned away with knowing looks.

            Tobirama eyed Takatora suspiciously.

            “Let’s get some coffee,” Takatora said.

            When Tobirama took another step, it felt like a knife in his calf. He grimaced and stopped.

            Takatora subtly took him by the arm and lead him back to the kitchen, which was thankfully empty.

            “I take it you’ve stayed after dark before,” Takatora said as he sat Tobirama down at the table.

            “And I take it you have as well,” Tobirama said.

            “A mistake you only make once. She seems particularly angry with you,” Takatora said. He stayed standing, and crossed his arms.

            “I thought It was just angry in general,” Tobirama said. He had his breathing almost under control.

            “True. If I were you, I would avoid the stairwell, it’s easier for her to get there during the day,” Takatora told him.

            “And here I’ve been afraid of the elevators,” Tobirama said dryly. Then, “why is it easier?”

            Takatora paused. “You know, there actually is a basement. It’s just sealed off. Elevator doesn’t go there anymore. But there’s still a door in the stairwell, behind where the janitor keeps his stuff. It’s painted over, but it’s still there.”

            “…Oh,” Tobirama said. He made a mental note to tell Izuna to avoid the stairwell. “Is that where It…she lives?”

            “I suppose so,” Takatora said.

            “Why? What is she? Why was the basement closed off?”

            Takatora frowned at him. He seemed to be considering something and took a long time to answer. “I think, sometimes when there’s a big empty space like that, other…things can take up residence there. Like, old things. The basement hasn’t been used for years. I guess she liked it.”

            “What kinds of old things? What about the fourth floor?” Tobirama asked.

            “Look, I don’t have all the answers. I just know how to avoid her.”

            “If you know about this, why are you still working here?” Tobirama asked incredulously.

            “The CEO is an old friend of mine. As long as he’s still alive, I’m staying here. After that, I’ll take my leave. You however, should finish your internship and never come back. Ever,” Takatora said. “If I’m not here, there won’t be anyone to help you.”

            “I don’t need your help.” Tobirama bristled.

            “Really.”

            “I could use it, maybe. But Izuna and I made it out on our own before.” Tobirama crossed his arms.

            “Oh, there were two of you. That’s good. Maybe her attention will be divided. Still, don’t come back,” Takatora said. “And don’t stay after dark again.”

            “Oh, I won’t.” And that was a promise. There was something bothering him. “How did you know?”

            “Just now?”

            “Yes. I thought I was…” he couldn’t bring himself to finish the sentence.

            “Believe me, you would have been, she was barely a floor away from you,” Takatora said. “I heard her. And, well, you felt it. It hurts when she’s near.”

            “Did she bite you too?” Tobirama asked. He was genuinely curious.

            “She bit you? Damn. I just got a nasty cut on my back. Now she’s had a taste though, make sure you aren’t caught again. Oh, and call me if you ever have to stay late,” Takatora said. “I’ve been here a long time.”

            Tobirama didn’t answer. His pride pricked at the offer, Izuna was one thing, they’d gone through it together, but Takatora was someone he didn’t really know. Still, he’d probably take him up on that. The man had just saved his ass. And…well, anything to avoid a one on one with that thing again.

            Takatora waved over one shoulder and started to leave.

            “Wait!” Tobirama called after him.

            “You want me to stay with you?” Takatora turned back in the doorway.

            “It’s not that, I mean, Izuna is coming in a minute,” Tobirama said.

            “Then what?”

            “Just… well, you know, maybe, after your friend is gone, if you’re looking for a job, try Senju. My brother would hire you in an instant.” Tobirama pointedly wasn’t looking at Takatora.

            Takatora turned away again. “Sure. I’m going to make sure your friend is still alive.” And he left Tobirama alone in the kitchen.

            Tobirama felt like he had more questions than answers after that. How many people knew about her? Had people actually disappeared? It seemed more than plausible. What was she? Why was she there? Why was she able to go after him in broad daylight today of all days? Why was the basement closed off? How long had she been there? Ugh. There was a headache right there.

            When Izuna came hopping in a few moments later, complaining about that ‘frosty bastard’ glaring at him on the elevator, well, Tobirama was more than a little grateful. He told Izuna to shut up and drink his coffee, he really just wanted a moment to breathe. He’d have to tell Izuna about the stairwell eventually though. He really wished they worked on the same floor, because he was dreading having to go back up. Heaven forbid he ask Takatora for an escort.

            The end of the internship couldn’t come soon enough.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> And there you have it.
> 
> If nobody really minded this, I have a wicked idea for another story.
> 
> Thanks for reading this far!

**Author's Note:**

> There is a second chapter, mostly because I thought it worked better to break things up a bit. 
> 
> Also, I have this nasty habit of grabbing names from other things I like. I mean, Shinra was the only name I could think of at the time...and Takatora was on my mind after gaming with my brother. Takatora actually ends up doing a bit more in the next chapter for reasons unknown to me.


End file.
